Demand for fitness equipment has increased greatly as many people have begun working out at home during the social distancing period. — Photo from Internet

The rising trend of working out at home has pushed up demand for fitness equipment amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fitness has become a popular word on social media. Many people are exercising at home to maintain their usual routine at their gyms, which have had to close. Others, however, have started to work out for the first time because they have more free time.

Anh Nhi, from HCM City, started working out at home to kill time during the social distancing period.

“This is the first time I have done a workout at home, so I needed equipment. At least, a mat. Workout sessions and classes are available online but not equipment. So I just called a shop and everything I needed was shipped to my door,” she said.

Nguyen Thi Hoa from HCM City had the same idea. “I am so worried about gaining weight during social distancing due to lack of activities so I set up a plan to have a 'gym' at home to keep my body in shape.”

Hoa said that she visited a shop first but they had run out of products, so she ordered online.

Inspired by friends on Facebook, Nguyen Trang from District 7 said she had more free time to exercise with her family members, so she decided to buy must-have accessories.

“Doing exercise is a good way to strengthen our resistance" to illness, she said.

Just with a click on Facebook or online shopping platforms like Shopee or Lazada, customers can find shops selling fitness accessories, including mats, dumbbells, bands, stability balls, and tubing.

A seller on Facebook told Viet Nam News that the number of customers visiting his page had strongly increased.

“Not all of them buy, but the orders have increased a lot compared to usual days,” he said.

A seller in Go Vap District was quoted in thegioitiepthi.vn as saying that her shop’s revenue had doubled since March. Instead of selling equipment wholesale to gym centres, her shop now sells products to individual buyers.

“Shops also have online services to support customers during the social distancing time,” she said.

Nguyen Hung, an owner of a sport shop in Phu Nhuan District, said: “Our shop decided to do online selling. The orders increased a lot after social distancing started. I had to hire more shippers and employees to meet the strong demand.”

Seeing the growing demand, many shops have introduced promotions to compete with each other and attract more customers. Shops are offering discounts of 10-30 per cent or providing a gift to customers who buy products. — VNS

While people around the planet continue to grapple with the pandemic, there’s also a call to pause and reflect on another cause – Time for Nature, the theme of the UN’s World Environment Day on 5 June.